Westwood cheers for fans
Former world No. 1 says it’s hard to visualize a Ryder Cup without opinionated supporters
Former world No. 1 Lee Westwood joined the chorus of players questioning whether the Ryder Cup should be played in September if fans will not be permitted on the course.
“The Ryder Cup, the crowds make it, really,” Westwood told talkSPORT, per Sky Sports. “It’s an incredible atmosphere and they (the crowds) make the atmosphere, that’s what separates it from everything else.
“The fans have chosen one side or the other rather than cheering for good shots or the players. It’s a tough one to visualize, someone holing the winning putt and turning to an empty stand with their arms in the air. If there’s one sporting event that needs the fans, it’s the Ryder Cup.”
While European team captain Padraig Harrington
said the event might have to “take one of the team” and be played without fans this year, current No. 1 Rory McIlroy
said last month that a Ryder Cup without fans is “not a Ryder Cup.”
That sentiment was echoed by second-ranked Jon Rahm.
Last week, Rahm said that the event isn’t “worth playing” without fans.
The Ryder Cup is scheduled to be played at Whistling Straits in Wisconsin from
Sept. 25-27. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, PGA of America CEO Seth Waugh said this year’s Ryder Cup could take place without fans.
Harrington said that while playing without fans might not be in the best interest of the event, it might serve the greater good of the sport.
“You don’t just get golf fans watching the Ryder Cup, you get actual sports fans and it captures everybody’s imagination,” Westwood said.
“At some point we’re going to have to come out of this and give people something to watch and entertain people. Ryder Cup is just another one of those things.”
CHARITY MATCH SET
McIlroy and Dustin Johnson will face Rickie Fowler and Matthew Wolff in a $3 million charity skins match to benefit COVID-19 relief efforts.
The televised 18-hole event, called TaylorMade Driving Relief, takes place on May 17 at Seminole Golf Club in Juno Beach, Fla.
There will be no spectators allowed on the course.
UnitedHealth Group pledged $3 million for the event. McIlroy and Johnson are playing for the American Nurses Foundation, and Fowler and Wolff are playing for the CDC Foundation.
Farmers Insurance also pledged $1 million for a birdies-and-eagles pool to benefit Off Their Plates, an organization that helps healthcare workers and impacted frontline shift employees.
The PGA Tour said it will follow all health and safety guidelines issued by the state of Florida, Palm Beach County and the city of Juno Beach.